COVID-19 and international tourism of Mediterranean Europe countries

Abstract

The still actual Covid-19 pandemic has an unprecedented negative impact on the tourism industry. Due to the nature of the pandemic, which became global in a very short time, international tourism has shown particular vulnerability. International tourism has previously shown significant sensitivity to negative external shocks, as well as a great ability to recover. Almost two years after the beginning of the current health crisis, it is still not possible to talk about its end with certainty, nor precise forecasts of the recovery of international tourism can be given. However, it is possible and useful to evaluate the negative effects of the crisis. The subject of this paper is to consider the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the international tourism of the Mediterranean Europe countries. The aim is to compare the negative effects and potentially conclude about countries that have managed to cope more successfully with the challenges that the crisis has brought. Comparative and cluster analysis are applied in the paper. The results of the research enable the classification of the Mediterranean Europe countries according to the magnitude of the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on international tourism and the formulation of appropriate recommendations for tourism policy makers in the analysed countries.